


Curiously Strong

by aimmyarrowshigh, spibsy (lucy_and_ramona)



Category: Union J (Band)
Genre: Kissing, M/M, Mindless Fluff, Walking Mononucleosis
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-05-24
Updated: 2013-05-24
Packaged: 2017-12-12 19:54:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,737
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/815406
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aimmyarrowshigh/pseuds/aimmyarrowshigh, https://archiveofourown.org/users/lucy_and_ramona/pseuds/spibsy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Four out of five people recommend being accidentally kissed by George Shelley on a regular basis.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Curiously Strong

**Author's Note:**

> **Disclaimer** : We don't own anything. No claim of knowledge or veracity is made towards anyone in the story and no aspersions or claims of character are to be inferred. We have no connection nor permissions from Union J, X-Factor, Simon Cowell, SyCo Inc., Sony, ITV, or Crown Management. No libel intended.

** Curiously Strong **

**  
_001._   
**  
The thing of it all is, George doesn't exactly know how it happens, but he's kind of always kissing people, or being kissed by people, or accidentally mouthing their mouths or lipsing their lips or biting their teeth or something. His mum calls him Walking Mononucleosis, and has ever since they found out that he'd given the whole of sixth form mononucleosis without ever showing a symptom himself. A carrier. He'd liked that; sounded like a survivor in a zombie film. He's just a zombie of kissing: equally unaware of his actions, and always getting his mouth on other people's flesh.

It sounds very Halloween, and Halloween is George's favorite holiday, so that makes sense. He's a kissing zombie. He wonders what that costume would entail, whether he'd need to actually put on a costume if he's technically a kissing zombie all by himself without it being Halloween at all.

But really, the point is, he doesn't _try_ to kiss people. It just happens. They walk past, they have a mouth, and bam. It's not like he's tonguing their tonsils or anything. Usually. Sometimes that happens, because -- George won't be the first to admit this part, but if pressed he'll agree -- he has a pretty face and people generally don't exactly mind being kissed by him once it's happened. Which is why, he suspects, it's not so much him doing a whole lot of unasked kissing and just more like his mouth is a magnet and other likewise-drawn mouths are pulled towards it.

He never _attacks_ people with kisses, or anything like that. He doesn't pounce on people and then kiss them (though he has pounced on people and then kisses have happened) as a plan or anything, that seems seedy and a bit like assault. It really does just happen. He'll be talking to someone, normal as anything, and then his lips will be on their face. It's a curse.

Sometimes, he's just walking around a corner or getting into an elevator or leaving the loo and there's suddenly lips on his lips. It's very strange. He imagines it's probably like being a puppy at a dog park, only fortunately, most people who kiss him don't do it on the bum. Or bite him. Well, there's some biting, but never his bum.

It's happened enough times that he thinks he probably qualifies for a superhero name. Kissingman sounds daft, and so does The Magnetic Mouth. Maybe Liplocker. That sounds like a villain's name, a bit. He does like it.

At any rate. It doesn't surprise him when the first thing that happens after he gets to London and meets his new bandmates is that one of them -- their name starts with J, but that might be the least helpful hint that his brain's ever called up -- says, "Didn't you kiss me at bootcamp?"

"Probably," George admits, scratching the back of his neck. "I sort of. Do that. Not on purpose. Not that I wouldn't, on purpose, you're lovely. Not that I'm -- er. Well. Yes, I probably did."

Another one of the bandmates tilts his head. "How do you kiss someone by accident unless you're in a club?"

George shrugs helplessly. He doesn't know how it happens. It just does, and he says as much. "And I'll probably eventually end up kissing you. It just sort of happens; I haven't got any control over it." He frowns. He doesn't want to alienate his band when he's only had it for about a minute and a half. "Sorry. I know it's weird."

The last bandmate shrugs. He has a thin pencil beard around the sharp of his jaw and a tattoo behind his ear. "There are worse things. Kissing's pleasant, at least. Unless you eat a lot of pickled onions?"

He shakes his head. George doesn't think he's ever had a pickled onion in his life, and he's not keen to pick up the habit. "I don't, no. If I start," he adds, "I'll avoid you until I stop, just in case." He hope that came off appropriately jokey.

The guy grins. He has a lip ring. George's brow furrows. "Wait, have I kissed _you_?"

"Obviously wasn't good enough if you can't even remember me," he replies, with a tilt of his head.

"I don't remember most kisses!" George says earnestly. "I have trouble enough keeping count."

That J has a good laugh, and George really wishes he could remember which J is which so he could put a name to his face. "Yeah, you did, love. Lucky me. Thought I was special, didn't I?"

"I'm sorry." He really is. "I'm guessing it was also at bootcamp?"

The J blinks. "Er, no. It was like an hour ago at the Costa up the street."

George frowns. He really should keep better track. A kissing journal, maybe, with dates and times, and he should get peoples' names when he kisses them because it would obviously make his life a lot easier.

"That was you?" He asks. "By the handoff plane? I took your coffee and you said, 'no, that's mine, mate,' and I said, 'oh, sorry,' and then somehow your mouth hit mine?" The lad looks completely befuddled, and George wants to clarify which J he is and figures well, adding insult to injury really couldn't be worse at this moment so he says, "You're... Jeremy?"

"Jaymi," Jaymi says. "And no, I was the kiss by the front doors. Jesus, you do kiss a lot of people. Should I get tested?"

"I don't think so," says George doubtfully. "Can you catch things by kissing? I mean, colds and things, but I haven't got a cold, so I think you'll be fine." He shrugs, feeling a bit helpless and more than a bit embarrassed. "Sorry," he says again.

He pauses. "I did give everyone in Bristol mono once. But I don't have mono now."

"Everyone in Bristol," mumbles one of the not-Jaymi Js. He sounds astonished, and quite reasonably, too.

"Well, not _everyone_ , but -- yeah, enough people that it was a problem."

Jaymi, the one he's already kissed today, apparently, shakes his head and pats George's shoulder. When George looks up, their nose-and-mouth areas brush against each other and the other two J's sigh heavily.

So that's George's first accidental kiss with Jaymi. And, well, the second; the first was one he doesn't remember, ducking through the door of a Costa.

 ** _002._**  
The second one's still not expected, because even though George is always expecting kisses to happen involving him, he's somehow surprised anyway when they do.

He's known the Js long anough to match faces to names and he's accidentally kissed Josh twice and JJ once. He didn't mean to, any of those times. To be honest, he sort of wishes he could figure out a way to accidentally kiss Jaymi more often than he has.

Of course, they've only known each other for three days and they all seem to be taking great pains to alert George of their presence from a distance so that they can deal with only the minimum of zombie kisses. Which, you know, is thoughtful and everything. So it doesn't hurt, much. George has taken to sniffing his breath in his hand every so often just to check, because alright, he does drink a lot of coffee, but he's also very up-to-date on his spearmint chewing gum and brushing his teeth.

He's chewing it a little extra firmly while they wait at the departures desk at Heathrow for the rest of the Groups to arrive so they can find out where they're going. He has both swimming trunks and longjohns in his luggage, just in case.

Maybe they'll be going to Antarctica. Maybe they'll be going to Australia. Nobody actually knows, so he's really just being efficient.

Everything with the guys is good, actually, and George is beyond pleased about it. So much could have gone wrong, him being put with three boys he doesn't know and keeps kissing. A lot could have gone wrong.

They seem to understand though that it's not -- it's not -- it's not a _thing_. He just leads with his mouth or something when he moves. He kisses Charlie from MK1 when she shows up, too, and that's much more on purpose than he usually kisses people.

She doesn't mind, either, just laughs and gives him a hug. It's nice. Back home, before -- well, it's nice that there are people in the world who don't mind him kissing them sometimes.

Sim waves him off with a laughing hand in his face, and that's fine, too. It's jokey, like. It's not like how Dan actually ducks to keep out of George's way when the GMD3 boys come up to give fist-pounding man-hugs to the former Triple J in the name of looking like good sports for the cameras.

It's, it doesn't really _hurt_ , because George learned a long time ago not to take that kind of thing to heart. But it still makes him feel a little bit strange, off-kilter like he wasn't before. He's suddenly much more aware of himself and the way he's walking, talking, moving, and he doesn't like it.

An arm comes around George's shoulders and rubs at his bicep, or where a bicep normally would be anyway, briskly. "Y'alright, little Georgie Porgie?"

George mouths that to himself, 'Georgie Porgie'. He's not been called that since he was about six, and then it was mostly an excuse to change it to 'Georgie Pudgy'. It sounds different out of Jaymi's mouth. More like a regular old nickname.

George nods and keeps carefully looking at his own knees. No one's mouth is anywhere near his knees (which is slightly lamentable, actually, although they are in a public airline terminal.)

Jaymi kind of tightens his arm a little and shimmies George back and forth. "You sure? You seem a bit quiet."

"Saving my voice," George offers. It's a good save. "And this gum is delicious."

"I bet it is." Jaymi laughs quietly. "Smells it, anyway. Have you got any more? Only if we're going to be on a plane however long I think I'll probably need some."

George nods again and digs around in his pockets for the packet. His fingers bump on something crinkly and so he takes it out and _of course_ it's the condom he's kept in his pocket out of habit for ages and ages (and probably shouldn't even use when it comes down to it because it's more likely than not got a hole in it at this point) instead of the gum.

"Might need that too, I'd imagine." Jaymi sounds amused, but not really like he's making fun of George, which is. Impressive. George has no idea how he's accomplished that. "With your face and kissing habits."

"God, it's _not like that_ ," George groans. He quickly exchanges the condom for the packet of gum and looks up at Jaymi with big gooey mortified doe-eyes to offer him a piece.

Jaymi winks at him. It's very fetching. When George winks, he looks like a confused bird. "Thanks, love," says Jaymi, and then without any space in between, they're kissing.

George thinks this one might even be on purpose. But he can't quite tell. Usually it takes getting to tongue for him to be able to tell, and that isn't even a real indicator of intention, just execution.

He's almost positive when upon pulling away, Jaymi makes a soft _mm_ sound. Not loud enough for anybody else to hear, just George, and it makes a shiver roll down his spine even though it's not cold in the airport.

George's lips press together like they're trying to tether themselves. "Sorry," he squeaks from between the tiniest gap in them.

"No problem," Jaymi whispers. He's just about the same height as George which makes him perfect kissing height. That's probably why. Hard not to kiss him, really, when he's that close and they're the same height.

George's eyes dart around the terminal and land on Staz, who much taller than George and quite good for piggyback rides, talking to Holly, whose bright red hair George is quite fond of.

"I think everyone's here," he offers to Jaymi. "We can find out where we're going."

"Yeah, sounds good," Jaymi agrees. He shuffles backwards a little so they're not as close, and he has a little pleased smile on his face.

George chances a glance back at Jaymi, and Jaymi is looking right back. He hasn't even wiped off his mouth in disgust or confusion, like most people do when they get a sudden George-kiss.

"So... off to destiny, then?" he asks.

"Off to destiny." Jaymi considers George, and then offers the hand that isn't holding his carryon bag.

George goes a little pink, but takes Jaymi's hand. Hand-holds are always on purpose, except when they're forced like on field trips or at family reunions.

It doesn't seem like a big deal to Jaymi, though. He barely blinks and keeps holding George's hand all the way over to the group that's congregated to find out where their flight is going. Deliberate hand-holding, George thinks, is very very different from accidental kissing. He's pretty sure he likes it more.

And when they open their envelope and find out that they're going to Las Vegas, Jaymi is the first to scoop him up into a definitely-on-purpose hug.

 ** _003._**  
The problem in the X Factor hotel is, George keeps kissing Ella, and the line's been blurred a bit whether it's accidental kissing or purposeful kissing.

Everybody else seems to think it's purposeful kissing, which is strange because he's pretty sure none of them know there's been any kissing at all.

It happens at dinner, of course, because they sit in such close quarters that George has kissed just about everyone at dinner and somehow, _somehow_ , he usually ends up sitting beside Rylan and Rylan spends a large portion of his meal not having food in his mouth and pointing his mouth in George's direction. He kisses Rylan rather more than he strictly planned on ever doing in his life.

But Ella, it's not like it's taxing to kiss her. Some of them are definitely on purpose, in one of their rooms when they're alone or mostly alone and it's just because there isn't much to do when you live in a hotel that that you can't leave and you're too young to drink, as dear little Ella is. But even the on-purpose kissing is sort of incidental in that way, just as a bit of a hobby for her it seems, so it's skating that accidental line that everyone else does.

He does so hope that she doesn't think -- well, George doesn't know what he hopes she doesn't think, and then _he_ thinks it's a bit unfair to expect her not to think it if he doesn't even know what he doesn't want her to think.

It's just that Ella's lovely, and young, and she has a sort of vibrancy to her that George really, really doesn't want to diminish in any way. He knows that it's the X Factor, and there's no real way to escape it unscathed but if anyone deserves to, it's Ella.

And it's not like he doesn't want to be kissing her. Because she's young and she's lovely and she has a sort of vibrancy to her that he really doesn't want to diminish. But in wanting that, or not wanting it, he doesn't always think he _should_ be kissing her, because he knows for a fact that he was her first kiss and he feels bad that she's only ever kissed someone who kisses like nine people in a day, even if it isn't -- like that.

And there's Jaymi. Is the other thing. The other thing about the Ella-kissing.

The thing about there being Jaymi is that there isn't _really_ Jaymi. It's not a Thing. Or, it's only as much of a Thing as the Thing with Ella is, which isn't a proper Thing at all.

Except they like, also kiss on purpose. When they're alone. Because it's a thing to do. They don't kiss at dinner or in the gym, because George is sort of Properly Ella's, but it does seem like maybe being improperly Jaymi's is how things are playing out.

It's all very complicated. Much more complicated than George thought his life would be, when he signed up for this show. He thought at the most he'd do a bit of singing, maybe have to deal with the press slagging him off, or one of the other contestants slagging him off. He didn't anticipate having, like, kissing partners. People To Kiss On Purpose. Because that's altogether different from accidentally kissing people. Kissing people on purpose is pretty much the opposite of accidentally kissing people.

Which on top of all the purposeful kissing, is still a thing that happens to him all the time. Besides Rylan, he keeps accidentally scandalizing poor Jahmene, and he humiliated himself beyond belief when they all met One Direction and Harry Styles leaned in for a man-hug and instead got George square on the mouth.

Not that George regrets that at all. There's a difference between being humiliated and being remorseful, and he doesn't know if there's a person in the world who'd be sorry they kissed Harry Styles.

They even exchanged numbers after. But George doesn't think he could really deal with anymore purposeful kissing partners than the two he already has and can't figure out in the slightest.

Two is far more than enough. Even, even just one, that would be splendid, if he could get it down to one. The problem with that is that it feels too much like he'd be _choosing_ one over the other and he can't do that at all.

Because Ella is great. She's really great.

But Jaymi is Jaymi? Which is also pretty great.

He can hold hands in public with Ella, but he can hold hands in private with Jaymi. And other things. If he wanted.

Strictly speaking he could do other things with Ella if she wanted to, also, but she hasn't wanted to yet and he wouldn't blame her if she never wanted to with him. He's just a hobby for while she's trapped in a hotel that, on first glance looks very spacious, but after a few weeks turns out to be the size of a pinhead.

And it's more than fine. He'd never want to pressure her into anything, anyway, and most of the time he's too busy rehearsing and singing and rehearsing and doing interviews and rehearsing to find time to do anything sordid with Ella.

But Jaymi.

They share a bedroom, and like. It's pretty normal to see your roommate in their pants. After showers, and that. Towels, sometimes. The like.

And if you're George, you're just always accidentally kissing people.

So maybe sometimes, sometimes, the things coincide, right. And George and Jaymi kiss in their pants.

That might happen. Sometimes. George doesn't think the word 'frequently' would apply, but maybe 'occasionally'. Occasionally sounds about right. _Occasionally_ there might be kissing in pants. Not _in_ pants, but while they're _wearing_ pants.

George is usually even wearing a t-shirt. To start out with. Once or twice or most times, it kind of comes off, but he does start wearing one.

That probably counts as wearing one. If he starts off wearing it, it's almost as good as wearing it the whole time.

A some of the time, not most of the time, but some of it, kisses from Jaymi are... expected. 

When they're called out last, though, and have to sing against Jade, and they're called again because they get to stay and carry on in the competition, though, he doesn't expect it. They're on stage in front of the whole nation, and Ireland, and they might be tied in a knot with Josh and JJ and Dermot so no one can really _see_ , but it's still a surprise. And George accidentally kisses Dermot as he pulling away from Jaymi, so that means it was probably an accidental Jaymi-kiss, too, doesn't it?

Jaymi's gone wan and he's still teary-eyed but he doesn't _look_ surprised. He probably is surprised, though, probably didn't mean to do it just then. It had to be an accident, on telly where anyone with a fast enough eye could catch it.

George just gives him a reassuring smile, and then as soon as the cameras are off them backstage, Ella gives him a very on-purpose kiss, so. That's that.

And if he wants to give Jaymi a definitely-no-doubts-about-it kiss a little bit, well, he keeps that in his own head.

That night, when he gets back up to their hotel room, the twin beds are pushed together so there's no space between them, and it even looks like Jaymi's rigged the blankets to cover them together like one king-size bed.

"Are you kicking me out?" George asks, aghast. "What did I do?"

The look Jaymi gives him then is clearly one of pointed bemusement. "Yes," he drawls, tone so thick with sarcasm that even George can tell. "I'm kicking you out for being too damn cute all the time. Get your things and get out."

George blinks slowly at Jaymi. "Then... the beds?"

That earns him a shrug. "We can separate them again if you want. I just thought, you know, we're usually in one or the other anyway. This would give us a way to, er, spread out a bit. If we wanted."

George nods. "Oh."

Jaymi gives him a wink. An actual wink, too, that's just on this side of lewd. "Makes kissing you all the more likely, doesn't it? Proximity?"

"I think, I think just standing about makes kissing all the more likely around me," reasons George. "But it'd probably be easier with proximity." That is when kissing tends to happen, after all. George's lips aren't stretchy enough to kiss people across distances, or Harry Styles might be in a bit of trouble.

Jaymi flops down onto the big new bed and opens his arms. "Get here, then."

It's very easy to listen to what Jaymi says, and any kissing they do after that isn't accidental at all. (Except, of course, when it is. But there’s more on purpose than on accident, these days.)

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